Apparatus and method for speckle reduction in laser processing equipment

ABSTRACT

Embodiments described herein provide apparatus and methods for processing semiconductor substrates with uniform laser energy. A laser pulse or beam is directed to a spatial homogenizer, which may be a plurality of lenses arranged along a plane perpendicular to the optical path of the laser energy, an example being a microlens array. The spatially uniformized energy produced by the spatial homogenizer is then directed to a refractive medium that has a plurality of thicknesses. Each thickness of the plurality of thicknesses is different from the other thicknesses by at least the coherence length of the laser energy.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims benefit of U.S. Provisional Patent ApplicationSer. No. 61/540,215, filed Sep. 28, 2011, which is incorporated hereinby reference.

FIELD

Embodiments described herein relate to thermal processing ofsemiconductor substrates. More specifically, embodiments describedherein relate to laser thermal processing of semiconductor substrates.

BACKGROUND

In semiconductor manufacturing, thermal processes are commonly used tomelt, anneal, crystallize, and activate dopants in semiconductorsubstrates. High power levels are generally used to processsemiconductor substrates, and lasers are frequently used to achieve thehigh power levels. Lasers produce coherent light that has a non-uniformspatial distribution of energy. Depending on the structure of the lasingmedium, the distribution will have local maxima and minima that resultin higher and lower energy intensity, which leads to non-uniformprocessing of substrates. Moreover, the shape of the laser energy fieldis often different from the desired shape of the processing region.

Much work has been devoted to improving the uniformity of a laser energyfield and adapting its shape to a desired geometry, with improvementroughly keeping pace with the shrinking scale of semiconductor devices.Further improvement is still needed, however, as the trend ofminiaturization continues.

SUMMARY

Embodiments described herein provide apparatus and methods forprocessing semiconductor substrates with uniform laser energy. A laserpulse or beam is directed to a spatial homogenizer, which may be aplurality of lenses arranged along a plane perpendicular to the opticalpath of the laser energy, an example being a microlens array. Thespatially uniformized energy produced by the spatial homogenizer is thendirected to a refractive medium that has a plurality of thicknesses.Each thickness of the plurality of thicknesses is different from theother thicknesses by at least the coherence length of the laser energy.

In some embodiments, the refractive medium is a unitary medium, such asa prism. The prism may comprise a plurality of columns of differentlength. The refractive medium typically has a receiving surface and aplurality of transmission surfaces, all of which are perpendicular tothe optical path of the laser energy. The distance between thetransmission surfaces and the receiving surface are different,constituting a plurality of thicknesses of the prism. In anotherembodiment, the refractive medium is a collection of rods of differentlengths. In another embodiment, the refractive medium is a plurality ofrefractive plates.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

So that the manner in which the above-recited features of the presentinvention can be understood in detail, a more particular description ofthe invention, briefly summarized above, may be had by reference toembodiments, some of which are illustrated in the appended drawings. Itis to be noted, however, that the appended drawings illustrate onlytypical embodiments of this invention and are therefore not to beconsidered limiting of its scope, for the invention may admit to otherequally effective embodiments.

FIG. 1 is a schematic view of a thermal processing apparatus accordingto one embodiment.

FIG. 2A is a plan view of a uniformizer according to one embodiment.

FIG. 2B is a perspective view of a uniformizer according to anotherembodiment.

FIG. 2C is a perspective view of a refractive medium according to oneembodiment.

FIG. 2D is a perspective view of a refractive medium according toanother embodiment.

FIG. 3 is a flow diagram summarizing embodiments of a method.

FIG. 4 is a plan view of a combiner according to an embodiment.

To facilitate understanding, identical reference numerals have beenused, where possible, to designate identical elements that are common tothe figures. It is contemplated that elements disclosed in oneembodiment may be beneficially utilized on other embodiments withoutspecific recitation.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

An embodiment of a thermal processing apparatus 100 is shownschematically in FIG. 1. An energy source 102, which may be a source ofcoherent light such as a laser, is disposed in an enclosure 114. Theenergy source 102 delivers energy to an optional combiner 104, used tocombine energy beams from more than one generator of the energy source102, in the event multiple generators are used. An energy beam proceedsfrom the combiner 104 into a uniformizer 106, which reorganizes theenergy beam into a uniform energy beam, which is passed through anaperture 116 to give a desired field shape, and then to a work surface120 of a stage 110. A substrate being processing is disposed on the worksurface 120, and energy passing through the aperture 116 typicallyimpinges the substrate in a substantially perpendicular orientation. Theenergy forms an energy field that covers a treatment area of thesubstrate. After a first treatment area is processed, the substrate ismoved to expose a subsequent treatment area to the energy field bymoving the stage 110. In one example, the stage 110 is a precision x-ystage. A controller 112 may be coupled to the stage 110 to controlmovement thereof, and to the energy source 102 and the combiner 104 tocontrol energy delivery to the work surface 120. The apparatus 100 formsan energy field having a desired geometric shape and a highly uniformenergy density distribution to promote uniform processing of alltreatment areas on a substrate.

The energy source 102 may comprise a plurality of lasers 102A, 102B.High power continuous wave or pulsed lasers are typically used. Thelaser energy may range from essentially unimodal energy (M²≈1) to highlymodal energy (M²>30) having hundreds or thousands of spatial modes. Thelaser energy from each generator may be collimated if etendue is largeto prevent dispersive energy loss during optical processing. Pulsedlasers may have pulse durations from the femtosecond range to themicrosecond range. In one embodiment, four q-switched,frequency-doubled, Nd:YAG lasers emitting 532 nm laser energy between 30MW and 50 MW in pulses ranging from about 5 nsec to about 30 nsec perpulse with M² between about 500 and about 1000 may be used.

The energy from the energy source 102 may be directed to the combiner104, if more than one generator is included in the energy source 102.The combiner 104 creates one energy beam or pulse from more than oneenergy beam or pulse. FIG. 4 is a plan view of a combiner 400, accordingto an embodiment, which may be used as the optional combiner 104. Usingoptics contained in an enclosure 499 to prevent light pollution, thecombiner 400 combines a first input 424A received from the energy source102 and a second input 424B received from the energy source 102 into oneoutput 438. The two inputs 424A, 424B enter the combiner 400 throughinput lenses 402A, 402B disposed in openings of the enclosure 499. Inthe embodiment of FIG. 4, the two input lenses 402A, 402B are alignedalong one surface of the enclosure 499, with the inputs 424A, 424Bentering the enclosure 499 in a substantially parallel orientation.

The two inputs 424A/B are directed to a combining optic 408 thatcombines the two pulses into one pulse 438. The combining optic has afirst entry surface 407A oriented perpendicular to the entry path of afirst directed input 426A and a second entry surface 207B orientedperpendicular to the entry path of a second directed input 426B to avoidany refraction of the directed inputs 426A/B upon entering the combiningoptic 408. The combining optic 408 of FIG. 2A is a crystal that has aselecting surface 409 oriented such that first and second directedinputs 426A/B each strike the selecting surface 409 at an angle ofapproximately 45°. The selecting surface 409 interacts with lightselectively depending on the properties of the light. The selectingsurface 409 of the combining optic 408 may reflect the first directedinput 426A and transmit the second directed input 426B to create acombined output 428. To facilitate combination of the inputs, each ofthe directed inputs 426A/B may be tailored to interact with theselecting surface 409 in a particular way.

In one embodiment, the selecting surface 409 is a polarizing surface.The polarizing surface may have a linear axis of polarity, such thatpolarizing the directed input 426B parallel to the axis of thepolarizing surface allows the directed input 426B to be transmitted bythe polarizing surface, and polarizing the directed input 426Aperpendicular to the axis of the polarizing surface allows the directedinput 426A to be reflected by the polarizing surface. Aligning the twodirected inputs 426A/B to the same spot on the polarizing surfacecreates the combined output 428 emerging from a first exit surface 407Cof the combining optic 408 perpendicular to the surface 407C to avoidany refraction of the combined output 428. Alternately, the selectingsurface 409 may be a circular polarizer, with the directed input 426Acircularly polarized opposite the sense of the circular polarizer forreflection, and the directed input 426B circularly polarized in the samesense as the circular polarizer for transmission. In another embodiment,the directed inputs 426A/B may have different wavelengths, and theselecting surface 409 may be configured to reflect light of onewavelength and to transmit light of another wavelength, such as with adielectric mirror.

In a polarization embodiment, polarization of the directed inputs 426A/Bis accomplished using polarizing filters 406A/B. The polarizing filters406A/B polarize the inputs 424A/B to be selectively reflected ortransmitted by the selecting surface 409 of the combining optic 408. Thepolarizing filters 406A/B may be wave plates, for example half-waveplates or quarter-wave plates, with polarizing axes oriented orthogonalto each other to produce the orthogonally polarized light for selectivereflecting and transmission at the selecting surface 409. The axis ofeach polarizing filter 406A/B may be independently adjusted, for examplewith rotational actuators 405A/B, to precisely align the polarization ofthe directed inputs 426A/B with the polarization axis of the selectingsurface 409, or to provide a desired angle of deviation between thepolarization axis of an input pulse 426A/B and the polarization axis ofthe selecting surface 409.

Adjusting the polarization axis of the directed inputs 426A/B controlsintensity of the combined output 428, because a polarizing filtertransmits incident light according to Malus' Law, which holds that theintensity of light transmitted by a polarizing filter is proportional tothe incident intensity and the square of the cosine of the angle betweenpolarization axis of the filter and polarization axis of the incidentlight. Thus, rotating the polarizing filter 406A so that thepolarization axis of the polarizing filter 406A deviates from anorientation perpendicular to the polarization axis of the selectingsurface 409 results in a portion of the directed input 426A beingtransmitted through the selecting surface 409. Likewise, rotating thepolarizing filter 406B so that its polarization axis deviates from anorientation parallel to the axis of the selecting surface 409 results ina portion of the directed input 426B being reflected from the selectingsurface 409. This “non-selected” light from each of the directed inputs426A/B is combined into a rejected energy 430 that exits the combiningoptic 408 through a second exit surface 407D into an energy dump 410. Inthis way, each of the polarizing filters acts as a dimmer switch toattenuate the intensity of energy passing through the polarizingfilters.

It should be noted that the two directed inputs 426A/B that are to becombined by the combining optic 408 are directed toward opposite sidesof the selecting surface 409 for selective reflection and transmission.Thus, the first input 402A is directed along a path that brings thefirst input 402A toward a reflecting side of the selecting surface 409by a reflector 404, while the second input 402B is directed towardtransmitting side of the selecting surface 409. Any combination ofreflectors may naturally be used to steer light along a desired pathwithin the combiner 400.

The combined output 428 may interact with a first splitter 412 thatsplits the combined output 428 into the output 438 and a sample 432. Thesplitter 412 may be a partial mirror or a pulse splitter. The sample 432may be directed to a diagnostic module 433 that analyzes properties ofthe sample 432 to represent properties of the output 438. In theembodiment of FIG. 2A, the diagnostic module 433 has two detectors 416and 418 that detect the temporal shape of a sample and the total energycontent of a sample, respectively. A second splitter 414 forms a firstsub-sample 436 and a second sub-sample 434 for input to the respectivedetectors. The temporal shape detector 416 is an intensity monitor thatsignals intensity of energy striking the monitor in very short timescales. Energy pulses incident on the temporal shape detector may havetotal duration from 1 picosecond (psec) to 100 nsec, so a temporal shapedetector suitable for registering a temporal shape on such time scales,which may be a photodiode or photodiode array, renders intensity signalsat useful subdivisions of these time scales. The energy detector 418 maybe a pyroelectric device, such as a thermocouple, that converts incidentelectromagnetic radiation to voltage that can be measured to indicatethe energy content of the sub-sample 434. Because the first and secondsplitters 412 and 414 sample a known fraction of incident light based onthe transmitting fraction of the first and second splitters 412 and 414,the energy content of the output 438 may be calculated from the energycontent of the sub-sample 434.

Signals from the diagnostic module 433 may be routed to the controller112 of FIG. 1, which may adjust operation or the energy source 102 orthe combiner 400 to achieve desired results. The controller 112 mayadjust an electronic timer coupled to an active q-switch of each laserto control pulse timing in response to results from the temporal shapedetector 416. Cycling the active q-switch faster makes shorter pulses,and vice versa. The controller 112 may be coupled to the rotationalactuators 405A/B to adjust the intensity of the output 438, based onresults from the energy detector 418, by adjusting the polarizationangle of light passing through the polarizing filters 406A/B. In thisway, the duration and energy content of the output 438 may beindependently controlled. The controller 112 may also be configured toadjust power input to each laser.

The output 438 may be interrupted by a shutter 420, if desired. Theshutter 420 may be provided as a safety device in the event the laserenergy emerging from the combiner 400 is to be interrupted to make anadjustment to a component subsequent to the combiner 400. The output 438exits the combiner 400 through an output lens 422.

The output 438 is a combination of the two directed inputs 426A/B. Assuch the output 438 has properties that represent a combination of theproperties of the two directed inputs 426A/B. In the polarizationexample described above, the output 438 may have an ellipticalpolarization representing the combination of two orthogonally polarizeddirected inputs 426A/B having different intensities according to thedegree of transmission/reflection of each of the directed inputs 426A/Bat the selecting surface 409. In an example using incident wavelength atthe selecting surface 409 to combine two inputs, the output 438 willhave a wavelength representing the combined wavelength of the twodirected inputs 426A/B according to their respective intensities.

For example, a 1,064 nm reflecting dielectric mirror may be disposed atthe selecting surface 409 of the combining optic 408. The directed input426A may have wavelength of approximately 1,064 nm with intensity A forreflecting from the selecting surface 409, and the directed input 426Bmay have a wavelength of 532 nm with intensity B for transmittingthrough the selecting surface 209. The combined output 428 will be aco-propagating bi-pulse of two photons having the wavelengths andintensities of the directed inputs 426A/B, with total energy contentthat is the sum of the two pulse energies.

The combiner 400 of FIG. 4 may be used to combine two inputs into oneoutput. Optical combiners comprising similar elements in differentconfigurations may be used to further combine outputs from the combiner400, if desired. For example, a pair of combiners such as the combiner400 may combine four inputs into two intermediates based onpolarization, and a third combiner may combine the two intermediatesinto one output based on wavelength.

Energy from the optional combiner 104 (or directly from the energysource 102) is directed to the uniformizer 106. FIG. 2A is a plan viewof a uniformizer 200, according to one embodiment, which may be used asthe uniformizer 106 in the apparatus 100 of FIG. 1. The uniformizer 200comprises a spatial decorrelator 202 and a temporal decorrelator 204.The decorrelators 202 and 204 are shown schematically in FIG. 2A toillustrate that the spatial decorrelator 202 is positioned prior to thetemporal decorrelator 204 along the optical path for most embodiments.The decorrelators 202 and 204 may be in physical contact, as suggestedin FIG. 2A, or they may be spaced apart if desired to allow propagationthrough a different medium for some distance between the decorrelators202 and 204.

The spatial decorrelator 202 mixes energy from various areas of across-sectional image incident on a receiving surface 226 of the spatialdecorrelator 202. Each component area of the cross-sectional image isprojected into a larger field, in some cases onto the entire resultantimage field, to create a composite image of the component areastransmitted from a transmission surface 228 of the spatial decorrelator202. Spatial modes present in the incident energy are overlapped in theresulting composite image to produce a spatially uniformized image.Local intensity maxima and minima are superimposed to reduce prevalenceof the spatial modes and energy distribution non-uniformity arising fromspatial modes.

The temporal decorrelator 204 reduces temporal correlation of energyincident on a receiving surface 230 of the temporal decorrelator 204 toproduce a decorrelated image transmitted from a transmission surface 232of the temporal decorrelator 204. The decorrelated image isphase-uniformized relative to the incident energy to reduce interferencepatterns associated with temporally coherent energy. The temporaldecorrelator 204 generally directs the incident energy through multipledifferent path lengths within a refractive medium to decorrelate theincident energy.

FIG. 2B is a perspective view of a uniformizer 240 according to anotherembodiment. The uniformizer 240 has a plurality of lenses 202A, whichmay be a microlens array, arranged in intersection with the optical pathof an input energy 206. The plurality of lenses 202A is disposed along aplane that is substantially perpendicular to the propagation directionof the input energy 206. Each lens 208 of the plurality of lenses 202Areceives a portion of the input energy and projects that portion onto acomposite image 210 with an area larger than the area of the receivedportion of the incident energy. Thus, a portion of the image from onelens 208 overlaps with a portion of each of the images from every otherlens 208 to form the composite image 210. The composite image 210 thusformed may have a central region 212 that has higher intensity and/orspatial uniformity than a peripheral region 214 of the composite image210, depending on the characteristics of the lenses 208 and thearrangement of the plurality of lenses 202A. It should be noted that,although a rectangular cross-section is illustrated in FIG. 2B,embodiments may have any desired cross-sectional shape, such ascircular, elliptical, square, hexagonal, or other polygonal and/orirregular shapes. Additionally, in some embodiments, the plane of theplurality of lenses 202A may be angled with respect to the propagationdirection of the input energy 206. Alternately, the lenses 208 may bestaggered, which is to say that each lens 208 may be located somedistance from a datum plane, and the distance of each lens 208 from thedatum plane may be different. Such an embodiment may provide addedspatial uniformization by passing portions of the transmitted image ofmost of the lenses 208 through another lens to produce the spatiallyuniformized image 210.

The plurality of lenses 202A is shown in FIG. 2B as disposed along asurface that defines a plane perpendicular to the propagation directionof the input energy 206. In alternate embodiments, the plurality oflenses 202A may be disposed along a surface that defines a curve with alocus of curvature located on the axis of propagation of the incidentenergy 206 on the transmitting side of the plurality of lenses 202A.Such a configuration may be useful in reducing dispersion of light fromthe plurality of lenses 202A, if there is space between the plurality oflenses 202A and the temporal decorrelator 204A. If there is no spacebetween the plurality of lenses 202A and the temporal decorrelator 204A,dispersive energy may be reflected by the refractive edges of thetemporal decorrelator 204A, or a reflective material may surround one orboth of the plurality of lenses 202A and the temporal decorrelator 204A.

The plurality of lenses 202A is shown in FIG. 2B as being part of aunitary object. Alternately, one or more of the lenses 208 may bedetached from the other lenses 208, if desired. Using a plurality ofdetached lenses may be helpful in embodiments where adjusting the lensesfrom time to time improves performance. The lenses 208 may also bedetached if, as described above, the lenses are at different distancesfrom a datum plane.

The composite image 210 from the plurality of lenses 202A passes to areceiving surface 220 of a temporal decorrelator 204A. The temporaldecorrelator 204A is a refractive medium that comprises a plurality ofrefractive panes 212 in contact at interface surfaces 214. Each of therefractive panes 212 has a thickness “t”, which may be the same ordifferent. Energy entering the receiving surface 220 of the refractivemedium traverses through the refractive medium to the first interfacesurface 214. A small portion of the energy is reflected at the firstinterface surface 214, returning to the receiving surface 220, where aportion thereof is reflected back into the refractive medium resultingin portions of the incident energy that travel different path lengthsthrough the refractive medium. The same reflection/re-reflection patternoccurs at all the interface surfaces 214, resulting in a large varietyof different path lengths traveled through the refractive medium.Coherent light that travels different path lengths through a refractivemedium will emerge phase-decorrelated provided the difference in pathlength is not an integer multiple of the wavelength of the coherentlight. If the different path lengths are different in length by anamount greater than a coherence length, sometimes represented as thespeed of light divided by pi and the optical bandwidth, of the incidentenergy, decorrelation is improved.

The panes 212 may be the same material or different materials, and maybe any refractive material that is optically transmissive. The panes maybe solid, liquid, or gas, for example pane-shaped containers withrefractive liquid or gas inside. Exemplary refractive materials areglass, quartz, and sapphire. Clear liquids such as water, and gasesother than air that may have refractive indices relatively differentfrom air, may also be used. The panes 212 is FIG. 2B are showncontacting at the interface surfaces 214, but one or more of the panes212 may be spaced apart from the others, such that one or more of theinterface surfaces 214 comprises two surfaces of two neighboring panes212 separated by a space. Such an arrangement may increase the temporaldecorrelation at the risk of some energy loss in the spaces. Surroundingthe panes 212 on the edges thereof with a reflective material may reducesuch losses in some cases.

The decorrelated image 234 emerging from the transmission surface 222 ofthe temporal decorrelator 204A has a cross-sectional shape similar tothe energy that enters the receiving surface 220, with a central area218 that has more overlapping image portions from the plurality oflenses 202A, and therefore more spatial uniformity than a peripheralarea 216 of the decorrelated image 234.

FIG. 2C is a perspective view of a temporal decorrelator 204B accordingto another embodiment. The temporal decorrelator 204B of FIG. 2C may beused as the temporal decorrelator 204 of the uniformizer 200 of FIG. 2A.The temporal decorrelator 204B of FIG. 2C is similar in many respects tothe decorrelator 204A of FIG. 2B, but differs in that the panes 212 arestaggered in a direction transverse to the propagation direction of theincident energy 206 (FIG. 2A). Staggering the panes 212 provides arefractive medium having a plurality of thicknesses t₁-t₅ through whichdifferent portions of the incident energy propagate. Thus, a portion ofthe incident energy travels through a thickness t₁ of the refractivemedium, experiencing a refractive effect on optical path length of t₁.Another portion of the incident energy travels through a thickness t₂ ofthe refractive medium, experiencing a refractive effect on optical pathlength of t₂>t₁, and so on with t₃, t₄, and t₅. If the panes 212 are ofdifferent thicknesses, the refractive medium may have up to 2n−1thicknesses, where n is the number of panes. Multiplying the number ofdifferent optical path lengths increases the temporal decorrelationavailable, particularly if all the differences among all the opticalpath lengths are greater than the coherence length of the incidentradiation.

The panes 212 in FIG. 2C are staggered a uniform distance or pitch “p”,each pane 212 relative to the prior pane 212, in one direction, say forexample in the “positive-x” direction. In alternate embodiments, somepanes may also be staggered in the “negative-x” direction as well as the“positive-x” direction, to yield a refractive medium with portionsextending to both sides on one axis orthogonal to the direction ofpropagation. In other alternate embodiments, some panes may also bestaggered along the y direction, in the positive and/or negative sense.Additionally, although the decorrelator 204B of FIG. 2C is depicted as acollection of panes 212, the decorrelator 204B may also be a unitarymedium, such as a collection of fused panes, or a prism, having aplurality of thicknesses constituted according to any of the modesdescribed above. Fused panes of the same material may be fused in a waythat preserves a refractive boundary between the panes to give a similarresult as a collection of stacked panes, if desired.

The pitch “p” of pane staggering, in the context of panes having similarsize and shape, may be constant for all panes 212, or may be different.If the average pitch p□ satisfies the relation 2(n−1) p□<w, where n isthe number of panes and w is the sum of the widths of the first and lastpane in the stack, then all panes in the stack will overlap to anextent. It should be noted that the panes 212 need not be all of thesame shape or size, provided that any optical path changes due torefractive effects are managed according to the specific embodiment. Inone embodiment, each of the thicknesses t₁-t_(n) has an equal arealcoverage, such that an equal area of the incident energy field passesthrough each thickness of the refractive medium 204B. Naturally, inother embodiments, the areal coverage of the thicknesses t₁-t_(n) may bedifferent.

In one embodiment, the decorrelator 204B is a collection of five glasspanes, each about 1 cm thick and staggered uniformly in one directionwith a pitch of about 1 cm per pane. The panes are about 1.0 cm×0.6 cm×1cm, so as to cover the optical path of an incident energy having across-sectional dimension of about 1 cm.

FIG. 2D is a perspective view of a temporal decorrelator 204C accordingto another embodiment. The temporal decorrelator 204C may be used as thetemporal decorrelator 204 in the uniformizer 200 of FIG. 2A. Accordingto the same general principle embodied by the decorrelator 204B of FIG.2C, the decorrelator 204C is a refractive medium that defines aplurality of optical path lengths for different portions of an incidentenergy field to traverse, giving rise to temporal decorrelation of theincident energy field. In the embodiment of FIG. 2C, a plurality ofcolumns 224 is disposed intersecting the optical path of the combinedimage 210 (FIG. 2B). The columns 224 are oriented to extend along anaxis parallel to the direction of propagation of the combined image 210in most cases. The columns 224 collectively form a refractive medium 226that has a plurality of thicknesses through which portions of anincident energy field travel.

The columns 224 may have essentially random lengths, as depicted in FIG.2C, and each column 224 may have a different length from every othercolumn 224, but neither randomness nor a number of different lengthsequal to the number of columns is required. A larger number of differentthicknesses or column lengths will result in better overalldecorrelation, and more thicknesses or column lengths that differ fromthe other lengths by more than a coherence length of the incident energywill improve results still more.

The columns 224 with different lengths provide a plurality oftransmitting surfaces 222 opposite a receiving surface 220. Energyincident on the receiving surface 220 travels through the variouscolumns 224 according to their lengths and emerges from each of thetransmitting surfaces 222 at different times. It should be noted thatthe columns 224 need not be arranged with a flat receiving surface 220,as shown in FIG. 2C, but may be arranged so as to provide a plurality ofstaggered receiving surfaces in addition to, or instead of, theplurality of staggered transmissing surfaces 222.

As with the decorrelator 204B, the columns 224 may be the same materialor different materials, and may be fused or otherwise bound together. Inone embodiment, a collection of discrete columns 224 may be boundtogether into physical contact by a reflective binder that encloses theperipheral sides of the columns in a reflective tunnel while leaving thereceiving and transmitting surfaces 220 and 222 unobscured. The columns224 form interface surfaces between them where they make physicalcontact, and the interface surfaces provide reflection and refractionopportunities that improve decorrelation of modes. A reflective bindingwill reduce any refractive losses. Additionally, the decorrelator 204Cmay be a unitary medium, such as a prism, fashioned to provide thedifferent thicknesses in a columnar fashion.

The uniformizers 200 and 240 are described as having a single spatialuniformizer and a single temporal uniformizer, each. In alternateembodiments, multiple spatial and/or temporal uniformizers may be used,with each spatial uniformizer the same as, or different from, otherspatial uniformizers and each temporal uniformizer the same as, ordifferent from, other temporal uniformizers. In other alternateembodiments, the transmitting surface(s) of the temporal uniformizer maybe diffusive, for example by providing a fine texture to the surface.Additionally, if the refractive medium of the temporal uniformizer isdispersive to any degree, the transmitting surface(s) of the temporaluniformizer may be angled to counteract the dispersion, if desired, or acollimating lens may be applied to the transmitted energy.

The energy transmitted by the uniformizer 106, according to any of theembodiments described above, is passed through an aperture 116 toprovide an energy field having a desired shape and size. The aperture116 may be used to truncate any portions of the energy field not havingthe desired uniformity, such as the peripheral area 216 of the energyfield 234 of FIG. 2B. The resulting uniformized energy field is directedtoward the substrate disposed on the work surface 120.

The optical elements described in connection with FIGS. 2A-2C aredepicted as being generally aligned with an optical axis parallel to apropagation direction of the incident energy 206. In alternateembodiments, one or more of the optical elements may be oriented alongan axis that forms an angle with the propagation direction. In suchembodiments, receiving and transmitting surfaces may be perpendicular tothe propagation axis or angled with respect to the propagation axis.Naturally, light striking a refractive boundary at an angle will bereflected to an extent. Reflective optics may be used to minimize suchreflections, for example by utilizing internal reflection where possibleand by disposing reflective elements around the refractive media.Optical elements such as the refractive media 204A-204C may have acurvature, if desired, to adjust the axis of propagation.

The temporal decorrelators 204A/B/C are illustrated as affecting thetransit of light through them by forcing the light to travel differentdistances through the refractive medium that makes up the temporaldecorrelator. It should be noted that in alternate embodiments, thelight transit time may also be affected by sending the light throughdifferent materials having different refractive indices. In general, thetemporal decorrelators 204A/B/C have a plurality of different paths forthe transit of light, and the different paths have different transittimes, by virtue of distance traveled through the medium or by virtue oftransit through different materials having different refractive indices,or both. Temporal decorrelation is achieved by forcing light to travelover a given distance at different velocities, either by travellingdifferent distances through a refractive medium, by travelling the samedistance through differently refractive media, or any combinationthereof.

In one embodiment, a unitary medium or prism having a regular shape,such as a rectangular solid, may be fashioned from diverse materialshaving different refractive indices to create paths having differenttransit times. In some embodiments, only two materials are used, withinterfaces between the two materials at different locations within theunitary medium. If a first material has a thickness d₁ and a refractiveindex of n₁ and a second material has a thickness d₂, and a refractiveindex of n₂, the effective refractive index of the total optical paththrough the two refractive media is a weighted average of n₁ and n₂, towith (n₁d₁+n₂d₂)/(d₁+d₂). By providing different distances d₁ and d₂ fordifferent paths through the medium, differential control of transit timealong the various pathways may be achieved. In some embodiments, thelight pathways may have transit times that are each different from everyother transit time by a coherence time of the light.

FIG. 3 is a flow diagram summarizing a method 300 according to anotherembodiment. The method 300 of FIG. 3 is useful for providing a uniformenergy field for thermally processing a substrate. At 302, laser energyis directed through a plurality of lenses intersecting the optical pathof the laser energy to form a composite image. The laser energy may be asingle propagation of laser energy or a combination of two or morepropagations, for example two combined beams or two combined pulses. Theplurality of lenses may conform to any of the embodiments describedabove in connection with FIGS. 2A-2C. Each lens projects a portion ofthe incident energy onto an image field that overlaps with the imagefields of all the other lenses. The overlapped portion of the imagefield, typically a central area of the composite image, is highlyspatially uniform, while peripheral portions of the composite image maybe less spatially uniformized.

At 304, the composite image is directed through a refractive mediumhaving a plurality of thicknesses intersecting the optical path of thecomposite image to form a decorrelated image. The refractive medium mayconform to any of the embodiments described above in connection withFIGS. 2A-2C. The refractive medium provides a plurality of optical pathshaving different lengths through which portions of the composite imagetravel. The different path lengths through the refractive medium resultin phase displacement of one portion of the composite image relative toanother portion. In some embodiments, every optical path length of therefractive medium is different from every other optical path length byan amount greater than a coherence length of the incident energy. Inother embodiments, some optical path lengths may differ from otheroptical path lengths by an amount greater than a coherence length of theincident energy, while others differ by an amount less than thecoherence length of the incident energy. In some embodiments, someoptical path lengths may be the same as others, while some are differentto provide temporal decorrelation.

The different thicknesses may be distributed along a single axis oralong two axes according to a uniform distribution or a non-uniformdistribution. The different thicknesses result in a plurality of pairsof receiving surfaces and transmitting surfaces, wherein eachreceiving/transmitting surface pair is separated by a distance that isdifferent from the distance of at least one other receiving/transmittingsurface pair. In some embodiments, the separation distance of allreceiving/transmitting surface pairs may be different, while in someembodiments, the surface pairs may fall into groups defined by theirseparation distances. In some embodiments, the distances differ by morethan a coherence length of the energy incident at the receivingsurfaces.

At 306, a treatment area of a substrate is exposed to the decorrelatedimage. The decorrelated image may be passed through an aperture, ifdesired, to shape, size, and/or truncate the image, for example toremove any portions of the image field that do not conform to a desireduniformity. To process an entire substrate, a first treatment area istypically identified and processed as described above. Then a subsequenttreatment area is identified, usually adjacent to the first treatmentarea, and in some cases overlapping or sharing a boundary with the firsttreatment area. The substrate is moved to position the subsequenttreatment area for processing, and the subsequent treatment area isprocessed by repeating the directing of 302, the directing of 304, andthe exposing of 306. The process is repeated until all desired treatmentareas of the substrate are processed.

While the foregoing is directed to embodiments of the invention, otherand further embodiments of the invention may be devised withoutdeparting from the basic scope thereof.

What is claimed is:
 1. An apparatus for improving energy uniformity ofcoherent light, comprising: a plurality of lenses positioned to producea composite projection field; and a refractive medium having one or morefirst surfaces and one or more second surfaces, wherein each secondsurface is located at one or more distances from the one or more firstsurfaces, and the refractive medium is positioned to receive thecomposite projection field at the one or more first surfaces and totransmit an energy field from the one or more second surfaces, or therefractive medium is positioned to receive the composite projectionfield at the one or more second surfaces and to transmit the energyfield from the one or more first surfaces, wherein the refractive mediumis a plurality of plates.
 2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein eachplate has a thickness greater than a coherence length of the coherentlight.
 3. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the plurality of lenses is amicrolens array.
 4. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein surfaces of therefractive medium other than the one or more first surfaces and the oneor more second surfaces are coated with a reflective material.
 5. Theapparatus of claim 1, wherein each surface of the refractive mediumtransmitting the energy field is diffusive.
 6. The apparatus of claim 1,wherein a distance between the plurality of lenses and the refractivemedium is greater than a focal length of any of the plurality of lenses.7. An apparatus for improving energy uniformity of coherent light,comprising: a plurality of lenses positioned to produce a compositeprojection field; and a refractive medium having one or more firstsurfaces and one or more second surfaces, wherein each second surface islocated at one or more distances from the one or more first surfaces,and the refractive medium is positioned to receive the compositeprojection field at the one or more first surfaces and to transmit anenergy field from the one or more second surfaces, or the refractivemedium is positioned to receive the composite projection field at theone or more second surfaces and to transmit the energy field from theone or more first surfaces, wherein the refractive medium is a pluralityof rods.
 8. The apparatus of claim 7, wherein no two rods have the samelength.
 9. The apparatus of claim 7, wherein the plurality of lenses isa microlens array.
 10. The apparatus of claim 7, wherein surfaces of therefractive medium other than the one or more first surfaces and the oneor more second surfaces are coated with a reflective material.
 11. Theapparatus of claim 7, wherein each surface of the refractive mediumtransmitting the energy field is diffusive.
 12. The apparatus of claim7, wherein a distance between the plurality of lenses and the refractivemedium is greater than a focal length of any of the plurality of lenses.